Ruwen Ogien's Defense of the Right to Offend in Art and Sexuality

Three books from the revived L'attrape-corps collection of Éditions La Musardine tackle freedom of expression, censorship, and sexual morality. Director Sarah Chiche states the collection aims to 'engage in the fight for freedom of expression and against moral panic.' Ruwen Ogien's 'La Liberté d'offenser' argues that the right to offend is essential to democracy, warning against current legal trends that conflate art and pornography. He criticizes 'aesthetic moralism' where judges assess artistic merit, citing the cases of Louis Skorecki and Michel Houellebecq, and the conviction of photographer Kiki Lamers. Ogien advocates for a legal 'minimalism' based on the harm principle, limiting censorship to serious, concrete harm. Julien Picquart's 'L'Œil et le sexe' analyzes exhibitionism as a political act, denouncing sexual conservatism and the use of indecency laws to enforce power hierarchies. Laurent de Sutter's 'Pornostars' constructs a metaphysics from porn stars, comparing them to angels and advocating for sex education through porn. The collection relaunches after months of inactivity.